Sweet or Bitter Water

   There is a quote that I kept up in front of me during the two years that I was a receptionist for Fairhaven Baptist Church. I read it many, many times a day! I recently came across it again while reading a book by Amy Carmichael, and I wanted to share it because of the impact that it has had on me...

"For a cup brimful of sweet water cannot spill even one drop of bitter water, however suddenly jolted."

    When working with people, whether it be at a job, or in a ministry, there will come times when you are "jolted".  This jolting will come in many different ways, depending on the circumstances you are in, and the type of people you are working with.  I have come to realize that if I truly have the sweet spirit that the Lord wants me to have, and am fully committed to Him, nothing bitter will ever come from my mouth or actions, no matter what someone else may do to me.  

     I am reading a book right now on how to have a victorious Christian life, written by an unknown author.  He tells the story of a Buddhist young man, who told a missionary, "I want to believe in Christ, but I have never seen Him in those who profess Him."  What a sad statement!  In every situation we face, we should stop before we do or say anything and ask ourselves, "Will  Christ shine forth through my response?"

A Note from Mary

     Hello, everyone!  It seems that the last few posts have been written by Tyler for some reason or another.  Normally because by the end of the school day I don't really feel like doing anything other than going home and sitting in complete relaxation.  Of course that never happens, but a blog post is still the last thing on my list (especially since we don't have internet at home).  Today has been a quiet day for me, since 4 out of my 8 students were not in school, so I feel as if I have a little more energy.  I may even go home and do a good workout!!  Well, a good workout for a lady who is expecting, that is.  I tried to continue my aerobic walking, and Tyler had to put a stop to it since I was hurting pretty badly the next day!  Now I do my cute little exercises and walk to help me stay in shape.
     I really am just writing to put my two cents in about our life the last few weeks.  I know Tyler has already posted the exciting details about us finding out that were are having a boy.  While I was waiting for the ultrasound technician to measure the head, heart, kidneys, feet, hands, and on and on, I almost started crying!  I said to myself, "Mary, now why in the world are you getting ready to cry?  Why do you have tears in your eyes?"  I guess it is just because I got sentimental thinking about the fact that I really, truly am going to be a mother!  I think I was also a little frustrated that it was taking her so long to tell us if the baby was a boy or a girl!  Oh well!  I have had many sentimental moments since I found out I was going to have a baby!  At times I have no idea why in the world I am crying.  Tyler has gotten used to that!
     A week from Saturday we will be celebrating our 1st anniversary.   I cannot believe that!!!  There are some days that I still feel like I should be in 7th grade!  I think there are some days when the people around me also think I should be in 7th grade!  I have realized that if I am going to be a mother I have got to start acting a little more "put together".  Just when I think I am getting over being a ditz, I have another "Mary Moment" as I like to call them.
     Another matter of importance to mention is that we are now almost half-way through the 3rd quarter of school!  I cannot believe how quickly the time has gone by.  I am certainly looking forward to May!  My kids are sad that we will not still be in school when the baby is born, but I assured them that they would be able to see him on the first day of school!  All but two of them voted for a girl, but I think they survived when I told them that it was going to be a boy!  My 3rd grade boy still pipes up once in a while and says, "Mrs. Brock,  I think your belly is getting bigger". I just have to smile every time he says that!  I certainly am at the point where no one can mistake that I am expecting.
    Now that I have rambled on about nothing, I will close out this little "note".  I think the reason Tyler does not allow me to post is because I cannot follow one train of thought. At least when I do post, everyone knows that it was me, and not Tyler, the man with the organized brain.  So long for now!

Newest Update on Baby "Brock"

     Well, today, we went for our 20 week ultrasound! The best ultrasound out of the 9 months of pregnancy! Normally, I do not care about the wait in the doctor's office for the nurse to come, but today was a different (very different) story! There I sat in the waiting room like a little 2 year old waiting for his birthday! I was squirming, sighing, and thinking that the due date was going to come and go before the nurse quit stuffing her face in the back or using her gift of gab!
     Well, finally, the nurse came and took us back! They weighed Mary (don't worry I know better than to tell her weight, especially on a blog for all the world to see)! She thinks that she looks fat, but guess what I think, she looks as beautiful as the first day I laid eyes on her!
     Then the count down started! Not until my Birthday, not until Christmas, not until the new year, but until we would find out if our baby is a BOY or GIRL! Well, the nurse look around, measured a ton of things, printed about 6 foot of pictures for the doctor and then finally, she decided that she would try to find out if the baby was a BOY or GIRL!
       Well, being a Brock baby and with Mary (Johnson) Brock being the mother, the baby was being a brat and very stubborn! The baby kept moving the wrong way and would not cooperate! The technician kept moving Mary's head up and down, moving her to her side and then finally, Baby "Brock" decided to let technician take a peek! In the words of the technician, "I am 98% sure that it is a BOY!
        Of course, we were both very excited! Actually on the way to the appointment, I told Mary that I had a gut feeling that it was a girl, but obviously, you can see that I have problems with my gut! But I am not in any way disappointed! Praise the Lord! You never know the Lord might have others plan in mind, but I asked the technician about her success rate of being right with the gender! She said in the 6 years that she had been at that Doctor's Office that she could not remember being wrong! So only time will tell the truth! But at this point, the Brock household will be preparing for a boy! That is a MAN'S MAN...a tough boy...not a little pansy!!
        As for our household, we are doing great! God has been blessing us beyond measure...more than we desire! We are praying right now about moving into a two bedroom apartment and dreading the move! Sorry for the delay in posting on our blog! Thank you again to our faithful readers! Until next, this is the "Rushmore Report"...reporting to you somewhat live from South Dakota!

A Hearty Thank-You to our Faithful Readers

      We would like to thank our faithful readers for reading our blog! It amazes me as dry and non-humorous as our blog is that there are still faithful readers! We just love our "fans"! (I will be sending autographs if you would like one! Just put your name and address in the comments section and I will send an autograph, which will be worth millions of dollars in a million years!)  To some a blog is "BLAH, BLAH, BLAH"! But hey, if it helps pass time then "whatever floats your boat floats your boat!"
       Enough with the rambling, Thank you for your faithful reading! It brings a tear to my eye! Its like roses in my noses! (WAIT, I'm rambling again!)
       A special "Thank-you" to Madison R., who reads our blog faithfully! She has told us numerous times that she is a fan of ours! You're the BEST Madison! We enjoy your happiness that flows from your innermost being! "A merry heart doeth good like a medicine..." (Prov. 17:22)  Thanks! Merry Christmas to all and to all a Good Day!

'Tis the Season to Be Busy!

     Hello everyone!  Well, truly, 'Tis the Season to Be Busy and also Jolly'! In the Brock's household, it has been very busy! However, in all the hustle and bustle, God has remained good to us, just as He said He would! Since it has been a while since we updated you on the our lives, I would like to just let you know what has been happening these last few months!
     As many of you already know, at the beginning of October, Mary and I found out that we are going to have a baby! A BABY! Needless to say, my first reaction was shock and I pinched myself a few times to see if it was a dream or reality! (You know dreams can seem pretty real, at least until you wake up!) Then my mind began to flood with many questions, thoughts (both scary and good) and many prayers to God!
     Because we were in shock and disbelief, Mary went to have her blood tested to see if it was truly a reality! And the test came back positive, Mr. & Mrs. Tyler Brock are going to be parents! (I think the thing that scared us the most is the fact that a little Tyler or little Mary (more scary than Tyler) was going to be running around like a Comanche!) HAHA LOL!
     At 8 weeks, Mary had her first ultra sound to see our little one! It was so neat to see our little baby, even though the extremities were barely visible! We could at least see that it was a baby! Here is a picture from the ultra sound!

 It is a bit blurry! (L to R) It is the head, trace of left and right arms and then lower extremities! Cute!

After all the shock of a baby, in November, our church had the 32nd Anniversary! Pastor Whitecar was our main speaker at the Mission Conference! The conference was very good, especially being able to see Pastor Whitecar and his wife! The Lord also worked on Mary & I's heart about some things through the messages! 

       As of this week, Mary is 12 weeks along! In the last few weeks, Mary has been feeling very, very sick! To the point that we thought that there could be something wrong with the baby! So the doctor had another ultrasound done today! God is SO GOOD! There is nothing wrong with the baby! Today, Mary went to have the ultrasound and as you can see the baby (we say "he") is doing good and has not skipped a beat! 

 A side profile of the baby! (R to L) Head, hand by his face and rest of body!

 Another side profile! (R to L) Head, a little more detail on the hand and faintly, the lower extremities!

A little blurry! But same thing without the hand by the head! Very cute! (It is because of Mary! Oh yeah, brownie points for me!)

While the nurse was measuring the baby, he was so cute--he kept raising his hand and moving around! Praise God for a healthy baby!

      We had a great Thanksgiving with my parents and some of my mom's family! Of course, I ate a lot, but I was very good about eating before Thanksgiving and I went back to my good eating habits! 

       Surprising enough, Mary & I went "Black Friday" shopping! (Neither of us like to shop!) At Midnight on Thursday, we went to a couple of stores! They were not too crowded, but we did "Man shopping", which is go in, get WHAT YOU NEED (nothing else) and leave! We heard that Walmart and Best Buy were a zoo! Then Friday morning, we woke up about 8:00 and went to finish our shopping! FYI: If you are going to shop on Black Friday, after the rush is the BEST time! We still got everything that we needed! And almost all of our Christmas shopping is done! PTL! 

       The school is doing well! Right now we are working on our Christmas program! This weekend, Mary & I are going to get our Christmas Tree for our FIRST Christmas together! AWW! 

       Well, that wraps up our life these last few months! It is pretty normal with a few interesting, exciting days! During this Christmas season, DO NOT get all "wrapped" up with the hustle and bustle of the selfish world...Remember Christ is the Reason for the Season! Share a smile, show Christ love to others and God will bless your Christmas Season!

College

       Every morning on our way to school, Tyler and I drive by the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology...most people just call it School of Mines.  We drive by between 7:15 and 7:30 and we always see one of two things, or both things.  Sometimes we see college students running to class so that they will not be late, and we also may see a college professor (easily distinguished from a college student) rushing to get to class so he is not late to teach.  Many mornings when we drive by I will say to Tyler, "I really miss college."  The first time I said that, he looked at me a little strange, but after a few minutes he said, "I guess I miss parts of college too".  As we said what we missed about it, it was different things...
       Tyler first of all missed the good times that he had in the dorm with the other guys.  He missed all the deep (and some not so deep) conversations that they had about different issues and on different topics.  Another thing he really misses is being able to sit under a teacher and be the one taught, rather than the one teaching.  We both wish we could go back and just learn more...you can never get to the point where you have learned "enough" or all that you need.
       I also miss the learning, but there are some things that I miss more than that.  I think two of the things that I miss the most about college are tests and projects, specifically reports.  To me, each test was a challenge to see how much I had really learned...the most challenging were those in my Biology class, which included: Botany, Zoology, Anatomy & Physiology, and Micro Biology.  A report was also a challenge to me of how much information I could gather through my own research, and how well I could put it into my own words.  Turning in a paper or a test that you have worked hard for gives such a great feeling of accomplishment.  I remember one night in which I finished a Zoology report on Killer Whales until about 3:00 AM, slept for an hour, and then got up and studied for my Zoology final until 5:30.  I was very worn out and sick from all the coffee I drank, but when I was able to turn everything in, it was very, very rewarding.  One last thing that I missed about college is student teaching.  I enjoyed every minute of it, and I learned SO MUCH myself.  One of my college teachers said that the test of a true teacher is whether that teacher can put into her students' heart the same love that she has for what she is teaching.  As I taught, I would think of that often.
       I know there is a much larger paragraph about what I miss about college than what Tyler misses, but he is not here with me, and I cannot remember everything that he said, but I know I have the basic details.
      I cannot believe that I am now a college graduate...it seems as if I was just in 7th grade, and finishing high school seemed far away.  Our lives go by so quickly, which is a reminder that whether we are in junior high, high school, college, or completely done, we need to be using every day for the Lord, because there is no way that we can take yesterday back.                                                                                           

Oh Deer!

       This past Saturday, our alarm went off at 4:45 a.m.  As it did, I was glad that it was not going off for me!  Tyler on the other hand was ready to jump out of bed.  All night he had been like a little boy trying to sleep on Christmas Eve...he could not wait to wake up so that he could go hunting.  I supported him by getting his breakfast and making sure he had warm clothes, hunting license, water, etc. 
      At about 9:00 Tyler told me that he had gotten his deer!!!  I was so excited for him!  Later he told me the story of how it had happened...He and his dad had been out waiting for a deer for a couple of hours and had seen nothing.  Finally, they decided that it was time to go home and come back another time.  As they got in the truck, and began to back up, they saw two deer off in the distance in a little valley.  Tyler got out of the truck, but he did not have a good shot at it.  He waited and waited, while his dad drove the truck, hoping to get the deer to move.  One deer finally began to run, and would not stop...so once again it could not be shot!  Finally it stopped, and Tyler aimed and fired.  He had gotten his deer!
      Later I finally got to see the deer...I made sure not to get too close!  I saw it from about 15 feet away as it hung in his parents' garage.  Thankfully the head was in a bucket, because that is where it was shot, and I am not sure if I would have been able to see that!  Tyler, my father-in-law, and mother-in-law spent about an hour processing the meat...I did not help here either!  I did give it a distant glance after all the fat and hair had been removed and it looked a little more normal. They are excited about the deer jerky, deer roast, deer shredded meat, and everything else they will get from it.  I am very excited for them as well, but am not quite sure how much of it I will eat!
      I am definitely in South Dakota now!  I know of two other people who shot a deer over the weekend.  I am just thankful that there is a Wal-Mart here with good cow meat!  It did put me into the Thanksgiving mood as I thought of the Pilgrims and Indians on the first Thanksgiving...everything they were eating they had killed themselves!